Scwk 5313: Social Policy in the Canadian Context

The course provides an introduction to the history of social welfare and the development of Canadian social policy and the social service system.  Major developments in social policy will be explored in the context of shifts in the dominant world views.  A close exploration of the relationship between social work and social policy within the Canadian context will be undertaken.  A framework for completing a policy analysis will be introduced.

This course will provide an opportunity for students to develop a beginning awareness, sensitivity, and understanding of the scope and impact of global or international issues on the lives of people in other parts of the world and our own lives, as well as on social policies and social work practice at all levels. As well, this course will explore the efforts of organizations (at the local, national, and international levels) which address international concerns. 3 credit hours.

This is a mandatory course for all fourth-year B.S.W. students. Various theoretical perspectives of social welfare will be examined, as well as social welfare experiences in both capitalist and socialist societies. The socio-economic-political context for Canadian social policy will be presented. The role that social work plays in perpetuating the very inequities it seeks to resolve will be analyzed, and following a collective effort to define the kind of society that social work wants, elements of a beginning practice of radical social work to reach this society will be extracted from the readings and class discussions. Prerequisites: Scwk 3016, Scwk 3013, Scwk 3023. 6 credit hours.